Dallas Cowboys Blog

George: I don’t see Cowboys as playoff team: OL exceeded expectations

Cowboys beat writer Brandon George answered your questions in a live chat Tuesday. Here are some highlights.

Comment From wdavids … Do you think the Cowboys are substantially improved from last year? While we should have won Sunday night, the Jets are no slouches. I am happy that we look like a football team again that can play w/anyone.

Brandon George: I don’t think the Cowboys are substantially improved from a year ago. I feel like this Cowboys team is a .500 ballclub. They still can’t figure out their fourth-quarter problems, struggle in short-yardage situations and can’t run the football when they need to run the football. Those are glaring issues. The easier schedule, though, will help this year.

Comment From Hamilton … As was mentioned by the broadcasters, almost every snap was with almost no time left on the play clock, doesn’t that give the defense a big advantage?

Brandon George: Yes, that does help the defense and forces the Cowboys to scramble more. The Cowboys’ headsets weren’t working well, Jason Garrett and Jerry Jones said. Usually, Garrett is very good about getting the playcall in early. He knows how important that is considering he was an NFL quarterback, too. He makes it a point to get the play in early. I don’t think that will be a problem going forward.

Comment From Garrett … Do you see Dallas making the playoffs this season. We looked like a serious contender throughout the first 55 minutes of Sunday’s game, but they could not get it done in the clutch, something Cowboy fans have seen to much.

Brandon George: I don’t see the Cowboys making the playoffs. Before the year, I said 9-7 and no playoffs. I’ll stick with that, but if this team continues to struggle in the fourth quarter, nine wins will be tough to come by.

Comment From Ross … How did the offensive line perform in your estimation? Other than Tyron’s 2 false starts.

Brandon George: I thought the offensive line exceeded expectations for a unit starting two rookies and Phil Costa, who had one NFL start before Sunday. I thought the pass protection was good for the most part, though the Jets did finish with four sacks. The OL needs to do a better job in short-yardage situations and that’s being looked at this week. It wouldn’t surprise me if we started to see more of Derrick Dockery at guard on short-yardage runs considering his size and he’s more physical than Bill Nagy. But I like Nagy, especially in pass protection.

Comment From Guest … Why didn’t we see more ball control in the 4th heavy does of running backs?

Brandon George: The Cowboys were seeing eight and nine players near the line of scrimmage. The Jets crowded the line, and the Cowboys decided to pass more. Plus, the Cowboys just can’t run the football successfully — getting first downs — when they need to and it’s a big issue. It’s been an issue for a while now. Jason Garrett said it’s “critical” to be able to do that, but the Cowboys haven’t shown they can. They can’t run when they need to run out the clock with the lead, which is part of the problem of why this team struggles so much in the fourth quarter.